Celebrating 20 years of acquired brain injury rehabilitation

Livability Icanho celebrated 20 years of service last week. The centre has been operational since 1998 and over the last 20 years have provided specialist community brain injury rehabilitation to over 2,800 people and their families in Suffolk.

Held at the centre, the event drew together people that have used the service over the years, friends and family, local supporters, community partners, health agencies and local dignitaries – for a time of thanks and celebration.

Rosemary Gravell is the centre manager and Clinical Lead for the service. She said: ‘We are proud to have celebrated the achievements of our service today. A brain injury can have a devastating impact on someone’s life. In an instant, anyone can sustain a long- or short-term disability which affects their livelihood, relationships and lifestyle. At Livabiltiy Icanho – we are committed to helping people get their lives back on track following an injury.’

The service has an experienced interdisciplinary team who provide specialist assessment and bespoke rehabilitation packages for individuals and their families following an acquired brain injury.

Rob Townsend, Operations Director for Livability said: ‘Livability is a charity that’s all about putting the right elements in place that will add up to a more livable, flourishing life. This is vital in someone’s journey of rehabilitation and recovery. We’re proud to have a team at Livability Icanho that’s got a wide range of expertise and enables us to do this for each person we support.’

How the service makes a difference

Support from Livability Icanho made such a difference to runner 54 year old David Swales, who suffered a debilitating stroke following a 10K run in April 2016. It left him with 40 per cent sight loss, mild speech impairment, neurofatigue and cognitive problems.

At Livability Icanho, David received a wide range of treatments, including physiotherapy, occupational therapy and counselling. His treatment was transformative: ‘I cannot speak highly enough of Icanho. With speech and language therapy, I learned that I don’t have to find the perfect word when I’m struggling, I can use another word instead. OT taught me strategies to cope, and counselling was amazing.’

Thanks to the support of Livability Icanho, David’s journey of rehabilitation has enabled him to overcome his injury and get back in to running. He’s since raised funds for the centre and ran 1000 miles in 2017 in support. He’s now won two West Suffolk accolades – Triumph over Adversity and the People’s Champion as a result of his support and funds raised.

Find more about Livability

Livability Icanho is part of the Livability family of services. Find out more about Livability here